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 |   Second blog -- answers to an ocean of prompts |
 "Failure is unimportant. It takes courage to make a fool of yourself." CHARLIE CHAPLIN  Sometimes it takes darkness and the sweet confinement of your aloneness to learn anything or anyone that does not bring you alive is too small for you. David Whyte        This is my supplementary blog in which I will post entries written for prompts. |
For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise"  Prompt: “sometimes when everything seems at its worst when all conspires and gnaws and the hours, days, weeks and years seem wasted – stretched there upon my bed in the dark looking upward at the ceiling I get what many will consider an obnoxious thought: it’s still nice to be myself" ― Charles Bukowski, Your thoughts on Bulowski's comment? Do you think it's obnoxious to be ourselves? === Bukowski can say that. In fact, Bukowski can say anything and we’ll savor it because he puts it in words so cleverly and neatly. If your life seems wasted when you are contemplating it, you can doubt if it’s still nice to be yourself, as Bukowski put it. Being oneself, in my opinion, is the sincerest way of being. The self gets distorted when we push it to show itself as something other than what it is. Then, in every life there is some value. Such a value may fit our general understanding of values or not, but how do we know if even the worst criminal didn’t mean something to someone or s/he didn’t do one kind act, something of value? Yes, I think, even for the lowliest of us, it should be nice to be them, if they are really them. Plus, if they are still alive, there is still hope to find themselves or to fix what has gone wrong, isn’t there?  For: "Space Blog" Prompt: On Lili J. - On/Offline   ’s "Invalid Item" “If you were to look/ In all of the right places / You'll find happiness” ----- Okay. My first question is: How do we find those right places and where do we search for them? Another question is: What is the measurement and definition of happiness? Even if the answer to this is more or less common, don’t this measurement and definition change from person to person? Yet another question is: Is there a length of time for happiness? Let’s face it, even if you were the happiest person on earth, would you still be happy if your mate of a lifetime or your only child passed away or if your country was devastated by war or a natural disaster? Thus, the right-place equation is not a given because nothing ever stays the same in our lives. It just may be that we can experience happiness only in small doses and not continually. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: If any person wants to change the world or anything about it, where should they start and what can they do? Or do you believe we should leave the well-enough alone? --- As much we want a better world, no matter what we do, it feels as if the world is unchangeable, isn’t it? Yet, just look at the history. It is full of people who changed it, some for the worse, most for the better. So, how do we do it? I’d say start from where we are, even right here in cyberspace. We can start with kindness and acceptance of those with different ideas and beliefs from ourselves. I see so many times, in different social sites, when someone voices a different political or religious belief, the nastiest replies. We are all entitled to our opinions but not nastiness. Then, we can pick an issue dear to our hearts and volunteer and help in any way we can. We can also begin by showing kindnesses to strangers, to those who have no families or friends left. Other things we can do could be take things more positively, so we can become role models to those who are feeling low. We can also plant a garden, plant a tree, plant something to help the environment. Plus, we can show kindness to animals. If we can’t adopt them for any reason, then we can help the organizations that help them. These are only a few suggestions. I am sure there are many others we can easily think of. Why not try? We do need a much, much better world, don’t we? Prompt: Eleanor Roosevelt said, “Do one thing every day that scares you.” As best stories sometimes come out of their authors’ fears, what do you say for writing about one thing that scares you every day? For example, what scares you today? --- Fear has energy that can be harnessed and used, like a work horse. How do you think Lovecraft, Ann Rice, Bram Stoker, Dean Koontz, and Stephen King came up with their works that scare and excite multitudes? They first notice their own fears. Yes, exactly that. What scares me today is the possibility of a hurricane that might arrive sooner or later in this season, since I live in the area number one that a hurricane is most likely to hit according to the National Hurricane Center. Although I have lived through a couple of hurricanes, it never occurred to me to write about it. As if I wrote something like it, I might draw its negative energy on me. But then, every year this time, we go through the same scare. If I were to write about this or some other fear, I would probably name my fear first and describe it as thoroughly as I could. Plus, I would look at its subtle signs, to start the writing with, which would probably be a fiction piece. Later into the story, in the middle of it, I would focus on the event or the process instead of the results, making things harder or easier on the characters remembering that the worse case scenarios get more attention than something wishy washy. Then, the result or the results of the event or character that induced the fear could be the ending of the story. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From HollyMerry  ’s "Treasure Chest" If you found a treasure chest, what would you do with it? --- I think I would call the police or take it to the police station. No treasure chest should be in my hands and neither should I be using what’s inside it. This has nothing to do with morality, either. It is self-preservation. I don’t want to get caught with stolen goods, any more than I would want to throw myself inside the flames of a fire. Prompt: From PureSciFi  ’s "WDC My Home Away From WDC" “WDC is a home away from home.” Where is your home away from home? I guess I have to agree with the writer. My home away from home is WdC, and it has been so for 19 years, as I spend quite a bit of time on the site, although mostly, it has not been home away from home but rather, “home inside my home.” Just look at my portfolio page where I’ve written, “Writing.com is the best writing site and my home in cyberspace. In this home, Reading and Writing are my twins.” Enough said.  |
If you missed any, here are the trinkets by me for WdC ever since our trinketeering adventure began. Enjoy!                                |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Charles Darwin said, "We stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us." What are your thoughts about what's inside us? Do you ever check under the bed for old times sake? --- Do I ever check what’s under the bed? Not recently. I have a new bed, thanks to my son, for which I got rid of stuff like dust ruffles or bedskirts for good. My bedroom now is not fancy but down to its bare bones especially after I got rid of the rugs. So, nothing can hide anywhere. As to the monsters inside yours truly, don’t get me started. I think, however, I am winning over them. Unfortunately though, it took a lifetime to gain some leverage over those impostor monsters. In my case, they were (sometimes still are) feelings and thoughts about my own self. "You didn't try enough!" “You’re wrong, again!” "Your work is not good enough!" “Don’t even try! You can’t do it.” “You’re not good enough. Be like so and so!” “Others fare better.” “There you go again. Your luck always runs out.” “Did you see what you just did? You goofed again.” “You’re just not lucky enough, good enough, strong enough…etc.” These monstrous thoughts have tucked me in some kind of a comfort zone, from which I rarely wander away or if I do, it is after weighing all the pros and cons. I can now pinpoint most of my safety mechanisms that begin with good intentions but end up with dubious effects. As to my monsters' origin, most of them emerged as inherited behavior since I had a wonderful mother who attended to all my physical needs and taught me many things, but she was also highly critical with a good deal of negative talk, which I internalized. An exaggerated but similar situation happens with all abused children, people with spousal violence, and victims of bullies, whether the abuse is verbal or physical or both. At the end, however, we have to really put the blame our very own minds that take the info fed into them and change those into poisons and hidden monsters. There's no use in blaming others while we feed and go along with the monster-maker inside us, is there! For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From afinger83’s "Invalid Item" “Secrets that you know you can share. Support that lasts a lifetime” Isn't it so nice and comforting to have a best friend through life with whom you can be absolutely frank and who does not care about how you do things, how you look, or how you have fared in the world, since they accept you just the way you are? But who can those best friends be? They can be in our immediate family just like one of my cousins who is a year younger than me has been my best friend for life. Then a life partner can become a best friend, too, as my husband was for me. A teacher, a parent, a workmate, even friends in faraway places can give us support that may last a lifetime. Sometimes, even a sincere simple word uttered to comfort us becomes a support and a motto for life, too. My grandmother’s “This, too, shall pass.” has become one of those comforting mottoes for me. Then, when people, our best supportive people, pass away or are unreachable in some way, what they were to us and their words stay with us as long as we live as gifts of a lifetime. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Write a story that either starts or ends with someone asking, “Can you keep a secret?” ---- “Can you keep a secret?” You ask me this with a smile and your eyes twinkling. I want to answer, “No, I can’t,” but I don’t. I just watch your face, not saying anything. But I think, ‘Surely, I can keep a secret, but how can I keep something when I don’t know what it is about? I don’t want to play with fire, you know. What if your secret has to do with hurting someone or, Heaven forbid, me? What if knowing your secret will make me scared for my life? What if your secret can make me ashamed of being your friend? What if I end up reacting to you differently, afterwards? To tell the truth, I am afraid of secrecy, and when I am afraid, I might not be objective or rational. Also, depending on your secret, you might not be honest or true to yourself. Remember, George Orwell said, “If you want to keep a secret, you must also hide it from yourself.” But you haven’t done that, have you?’ So, I keep staring at you, wishing for that lurking possibility that you’ll give up telling me any secrets. You chuckle at my indecision. “Whether you keep my secret or not, I’ll tell you anyway,” you say. Oh, oh! I hope inwardly that your secret doesn’t cause heartache or isolation for me. “I’m not only your friend,” you say. “I am in love with you.” Well, now. This is different, isn’t it? It is okay if I can’t be objective or rational. And I am not afraid, either. Instead, I rejoice. Yes, I will be reacting to you differently, now that I’ve learned your secret, and it won’t be the scariest thing in the world. (Note: This is only a made-up story in a few minutes. Don’t anyone read anything into it.)  For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Monty  ’s "YOU CAN DO ANYTHING" “You can do anything if you but try to be like the eagle and set your thoughts high.” ---- I guess the second part of the quote has more meaning to it, rather than the first part. Most goals usually depend on the second part. As to the word “thoughts,” I would rather say mind. Thoughts may have been a replacement for mind during early twentieth century, but I think there has been a lot of meaning change by then. “You can do anything?” No, you can’t. You can’t change yourself into a fish or get a different set of genes as if another being, for example. Yet, “You can do anything if…” makes sense. The trigger word here is if. Now that I’ve taken the quote apart, I do love the meaning it conveys. The real challenge the quote puts forth is about sharpening and maintaining the focus. This type of focusing makes personal productivity possible, manageable, and of significant value. You take any person who is famous for high productivity, and you’ll find a focused mind. Most of us usually complain that we have too much on our plate and too little time and strength to do it. This is because we haven’t learned focusing and using our time wisely. Still, not everyone can do everything at the same time. Focusing is the catalyst and finishing what we start is the magic touch for the success of all projects. How efficient we can be depends on our focusing, choosing and eliminating, and finishing up what we have started. This way we can do almost anything if we set our minds on it. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: "To me, there's no better feeling then arriving home." Use this in your Blog entry today. === “There is no place like home,” says Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, meaning Kansas. She may have a point there; however, the definition of home depends on the person who uses the word ‘home.’ To a dedicated sailor, home may be the open seas. To a surgeon, it may mean the operating room. To a lawyer, it may mean the courthouse. To an author it may mean finding the right words for the right project. To most of us, home can be the place where we relax and sleep at night. In my younger years, home was wherever I happened to be. In old age, home is the place where I have my things, my books and objects like photos and items that carry memories. In other places, such as other peoples’ homes, markets, or even the beach--which was my favorite outdoor place--nowadays fill me with a sense of having fallen into some other world, similar or adjacent to my own, and one from which I wish be pitched back. I guess home is not a place but, when encountered and experienced, a feeling of belonging that gives a person a sigh of relief. Yet, at this moment in my life, it is an actual house that feels home to me. This may change in years, whatever years may bring, just as the idea of home has changed so drastically in my past. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Nixie  ’s "Gifted by Nature " “Go placidly amid the noise and thy haste and remember what peace there may be silence.” (by Max Ehrmann) --- Beauty not only means aesthetic pleasure but also harmony, and appreciating the hidden or slightly visible beauties around us, in reverence, points to an emotionally and spiritually evolved human being. We experience our surroundings with our senses and find pleasure in what we see and feel. This type of experiencing needs silence, especially the silencing of our internal judges and critics, worries, and that flood of unnecessary thoughts. In other words, we need not be distracted by anything else, internally or externally such our smartphones, so we can pay attention to, observe, and delight in our surroundings, in their lines, colors, sounds, smells, patterns, textures, and meanings. Appreciating whatever we can appreciate enables us to come closer what is sacred, that is deserving of reverence and respect. It also sharpens our senses and awareness. This is because beauty strikes just about everything indiscriminately. We just need the silence and the eyes to see it. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: What was the best party you ever had or attended? --- Where we lived once, close to our house, there was a very large open field with a creek running by the side of it. It wasn’t a park, but the field was for public use. It housed fairs, community picnics, or temporary markets. This place has been the setting for the best parties I attended. One day, a circus came to town to stay a week, and a whole group of us, I think we were ten to twelve noisy teens, made a party out of it. We went to the circus as a group, and we were enjoying ourselves so much that the clowns began to address us and the riders made their horses kneel before us. After the show, someone approached to invite us to the back of the large tent and showed us the animals and the workers’ cramped living spaces in tiny tents or on wheels. It was an amazing experience. Of course, this was way back when, before the laws “for security” messed up people’s lives. The next day, my grandmother made a whole lot of pastries and I and my five friends carried them to the circus to thank the people who were so nice to us. They said, we could always join them. To this day, I wonder why I didn’t join that circus. But then, maybe I did in some way. Isn’t this entire life a circus? For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From celiasgirl ’s "Invalid Item" "What would life be like without beautiful dreams?" What would it be like? ----- I call dreams brain-stories. Yet, some claim they are more than that. They claim we travel to places and events, leaving our bodies behind. Others attach them to the machinations of heavenly beings. One thing is for sure. They are linked to our emotions and our inner worlds. Sometimes, emotionally traumatic memories are rehearsed and then new kind of reality or a simulation of it is created, resembling some kind of a psychological therapy. No matter what causes dreams, the beautiful ones fulfill our wishes and cleanse us from the results of fearful experiences. If these beautiful dreams didn’t exist, we would probably enjoy a deeper sleep and would be well rested; however, we would, then, have to resolve everything in real life, which could present unsavory consequences, as if there isn’t enough strife in the world, already. As for my beautiful dreams, I like them when they are like stories with a plot, a beginning and an ending. Most of my dreams, on the other hand, present themselves in fragments. Another thing I noticed is that during my most troubled times, I don’t recall my dreams at all. This is an anomaly because most of the time, I dream five or six dreams a night and I can recall them upon the moment I awaken, although they evaporate later on, just like anything beautiful with a short life. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Tommy Orange says in There There, “Numbers are consistent. You can count on them.” What do you think of number 20, the now-age of WdC? === Numerologists think number 20 symbolizes spirituality. If you are 20 or you keep seeing the number 20 all around you, it may mean your spiritual journey has begun. Does that mean Writing.com has begun its spiritual journey? I thought it was doing just perfect before, but let’s find out what else it can accomplish. Let’s watch the site and ourselves really closely. On the other hand, what about 2020? Does it mean a double dose of spirituality went to this year’s head? Those who know these matters claim that religious/spiritual and somewhat divine people who have risen up and have achieved some success are the ones who may likely fall? Remember the fallen angel? In which case, I am going to stick with the lone 20 of WdC. I predict there is even more success in front of our community, with love, harmony, and superior writing, waiting to be explored and experienced. Happy 20th Birthday, WdC! For: "Space Blog" From: ruwth  ’s "The Pressure Is On . . ." “Who are you?” === I think there is a song “Who are you?” by Who, which I am dubious about its lyrics, that is the choice of words in it. Truth be told, I believe this is an esoteric question to which very few if any know the full answer. If asked, “Who are you?” I would probably tell you my name, my age, my ss number (well, just maybe), the kind of family I have, my education, my job status or the lack of it, my height, weight, medical conditions, lifestyle, etc. Some of my answers would keep changing though, like my weight, my likes and dislikes, where I live etc. A person, take me for example, may have so much more (or less) to her than what she sees in herself. How I would describe myself, as to what I believe and do or what my goals are, are only for the moment. My own description of me wouldn’t be correct and it could change. For that reason, I wouldn’t bet a penny on it. You shouldn't either. So, to the question of “Who are you?” I answer with my own question. “Who am I? You tell me!” |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt “Anger points powerfully to the denial of rights, but the exercise of rights can’t live and thrive on anger. It lives and thrives on the dogged pursuit of justice.” Ursula K. Le Guin What do you think about anger or about the expression of it? ----- Anger is a basic human emotion, rising up as a rage when something doesn’t go our way. Only self-awareness is able to tone it down. Otherwise, like cell-division, it multiplies and enlarges itself. This is usually a reaction to perceived danger that threatens us and makes visible our insecurities, irritations, and impatience with other people or events. This type of an anger also tries to safeguard our self-respect against misunderstandings human fallibilities, and the ill intent of others. Yet, when we really think about it all, anger has a response-to-fear element in it. In this way, it has nothing to do with self-respect or anything positive. On the other hand, anger becomes a destructive force fed by a self-indulgent fury and hate, and shows up in public outbursts as if a reactionary right with uncontrolled behavior. We need to stop ourselves before letting anger get out of hand, as anger starts with a hurt or annoyance, rises to fury and hatred, resulting in vengefulness and self-righteousness. Worse yet, in its most concentrated forms, it causes destruction, riots, vandalism, and wars. I believe no hurt in the world should result in such anger, destruction, and maladaptability. There are always better and more peaceful ways to handle difficult matters. If we can’t find any better ways, we need to try to create them; in fact, we must try to create them for the welfare of all of us. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Spring Break Adore♥  ’s "Love Scars" “True love heals; it is a fountain of life.” ----- I have the suspicion that we come to Earth willingly and out of love, and possibly we are sent here with love, also, with the sole purpose of finding out and learning about love. This is not an easy place to live, but here, we learn how to choose love over fear. Fear may feel real but it is an illusion, and once we learn how to love unconditionally, we’ll fear nothing. That unconditional love, loving others, compassion, empathy, and the ability to discern and connect to others makes love a healer. All relationships involve love, but unfortunately, due to our inexperience, we expect something when we give something, which also seems true of love, but it isn’t. True love doesn’t expect a payback. True love heals, blows life into the inanimate, makes it possible to have the other person see, experience, and share their worth. True love doesn’t hold grudges and forgives all abuses and betrayals, and it lets everyone it touches to live in joy. Yet, it is a very difficult subject to truly learn and assimilate into our psyches. Very few of us who are born onto this earth are able to master it, but almost all of us recognize it when we see it in action. Thus, it is a good idea to choose love over everything, especially fear and ego, so we can all graduate with honors after having learned what we came here to learn. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" “Sometimes I feel like if you just watch things, just sit still and let the world exist in front of you - sometimes I swear that just for a second time freezes and the world pauses in its tilt. Just for a second. And if you somehow found a way to live in that second, then you would live forever.” ― Lauren Oliver Do you agree or disagree with Lauren? --- I would neither agree nor disagree with Lauren Oliver. What she is talking about is her own experience and she is entitled to it, as we all are with the ways we experience our surroundings and our moments. As for me, sitting still and pausing for second or two works well, especially if I have been preoccupied, rushing to get things done, or feeling the weight of the world for one reason or another. Such a pause is an exercise of reverting to simplicity and giving myself a break, so I can think clearer and act more wisely. This taking a tiny time-out has a calming effect on me. Yet, unlike Lauren Oliver, I don’t think just because I paused, I could live forever. I think my time-out can only be good for a little while. To each, her own! For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Beholden  ’s "Fall Poem" “The world's a bright and kindly place when our autumn friend returns.”. --- I am not so sure autumn has been a true friend to me. At one time in my life, it was my favorite season. That was until I developed an allergy to ragweed and just about anything else in the atmosphere. My allergies were comprehensive, but ragweed took the cake. All allergists I visited agreed that my kind of ragweed allergy they couldn’t cure for good or even calm down a bit. It wasn’t just the allergy that was the culprit but that it led to a full-blown asthma, resulting in a move to Florida from New York, so I could stay alive. Mainland USA is the main producer of ragweed, but Florida and most parts of California have a less amount of it in season. However, I might be blamed for some of this trouble, too. Where we lived on Long Island, we had a two-acre backyard of wild vegetation and huge trees, mostly oaks. I liked to lie in a hammock, read for hours, and watch the colorful leaves fall about me as nature donned its finest outfits. I think I overexposed myself without noticing what too much beauty can do to a person’s immune system. I just couldn't handle it. So “bright and kindly” for me has been dubious. Bright, yes; kindly, no. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: How did a teddy bear get on the moon? Write about this in your Blog entry today. --- the man on the moon asked for a friend “very soon” so, in a cocoon sent by a raccoon accompanied by a tune dressed up in maroon teddy bear at noon landed on a dune on moon for my odd lampoon For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From GabriellaR45 ’s "Invalid Item" “With a melody of remembrance, mutating the rainy clouds tomorrow.” ---- This reminded me of the song, “Raindrops keep falling on my head,” and me in flipflops enjoying getting wet together with my cousins when we were pre-teens. This was the time when we all skipped into mud, puddles, and trouble, and not away from such stuff. In general, getting caught in the rain and the bad weather may not be a desirable occasion, but on the plus side, it is said that people score higher on memory tests on such days. Such a positive about dull days and inclement weather, don’t you think! As far as negatives and positives go, rain isn’t only about the floods, clogged traffic, and forgetting the umbrella at home. It is living in the moment, appreciating the nature’s beauty and the music of the raindrops. When the rain stops, kids can come out to play and frogs can jump into the ponds, and the nature can shine in its green colors, to let the earth give off its fresh aroma. Precious, I would say. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Douglas Adams says, in his book, The Restaurant at the End of the Universe, “The story so far: In the beginning the Universe was created. This has made a lot of people very angry and been widely regarded as a bad move.” Considering everything that has happened and keeps happening, do you think, as a joke or a fact, the creation of the Universe was a bad move? --- Joke or no joke, first, I wouldn’t mess with why the creation happened. I am too much of a coward for that. I don’t take well to being punished. Second, I don’t believe any brain ever created on earth is up to the task of knowing or understanding why the universe was created, let alone my poor little gray matter. After my first and second reasons above, who am I to judge if the creation of the Universe was a bad move? Who am I to pass judgment on an intelligence that is much, much greater than all the brains on earth put together? Enough said. For: "Space Blog" "Most often conditions [ of ] life push us to do things we think we cannot do; challenges are here."--- What do you think? Can we overcome the challenges facing us? How? --- Since the item was invalid, I am answering the quote from it. This quote might refer to the idea of the “great schoolroom earth” and the truth about how we create our reality through the process of trials, errors, failings, and successes. Yes, I think we may overcome the challenges facing us, at least, most of the time. According to Einstein’s E=MC2 and the teachings of religions and spiritual groups, we are mostly or totally made up of energy. We, however, do not know it or believe it or we forget about it because it is easier to disregard difficult concepts since we have such small brains. That is where the life’s challenges come in. They push us to face our strengths and possibilities and that we can overcome that hurdle and pass the test. Even when we are in the brink of giving up, conditions can attack us, forcing us into action. When we are so pushed, if we have any guts, we take on the challenge and find out we overcome it with some or partial success. Thus we find out about our strengths and that challenges will always be here to be met head-on. Addendum: RANT I try not to complain much or just about anything, but I am getting fed up with our blackness or whiteness. Just about half an hour ago, I received in the mail Sept/Oct 2020 issue of Poets and Writers. Writing arts should be the one place that should be color-blind. But no. It obviously isn’t. On page 57, is an article titled I’m Writing to You. It has letters from writers of the black literary community. The first letter starts with Dear Fellow Black Writers. Then, in one of the letters toward the end there is a different one To Writers Struggling with Their Whiteness. Imagine if we came up with a White Literary Community and wrote something like To Writers Struggling with Their Blackness. There would be blood on the streets. Now, I have dear writer-friends who can be black or white. The color of their skin matters nothing to me. It matters that they are writing. God knows most of us, starting with me, carry inside us both a black gene and a white gene, if not some others as well. After all who among us can trace their origins for thousands or millions of years? Can’t we just accept one another without racism either way? Why do we bring it in the holiest of holy arts, our writing? |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: “Where is the love, beauty, and truth we seek But in our mind? and if we were not weak Should we be less in deed than in desire?” Percy Bysshe Shelley What do you think the poet is asking? And what are your opinions on the subject? --- I consider Shelley a poet of emotional extremes, and as such, here he dramatizes the battle between caution and idealism. No wonder he questions why what we so desire in our mind stays undone or partly done, if only we weren’t so weak. To paraphrase the poet’s words, his words merely say, in question form: What we go after, like love, beauty and truth, is already inside our mind, showing us a map. The reason we don’t put those ideals into action is because we are weak. I think Shelley is passionate with his wording as an overly hopeful romantic. Not that we should stop seeking love, beauty, and truth inside ourselves, but putting what we find to actions just can’t be done, always. Imagine forgiving and loving a terrorist who demolishes a whole city and kills all the people in it! Only Christ might forgive and love such a person, and in my opinion, only Christ would. In this sense, a perfect achievement of the highest ideals means a Shangri-la or a pipe-dream if you will. It is just not doable in the world we are living in, if not for anything but for the constant change everything about us goes through, and this includes our language. As such, this year, I took upon myself to read all the novels of Dickens. Dickens is fun to read and his novels were written in the middle of the nineteenth century, which is not so far away when compared to the historical age of our planet. Still, the language and the author’s storytelling can try a reader. And this is a minimal deed that emerged from my wishful mind. This quote, by the way, comes from a personal poem by Shelley, an account of a discussion he had with his friend Byron. In the poem, when Byron, named Maddalo, questions the above words in the quote, Shelley (named Julian in the poem) answers,” there are many more things in the world which are not attempted by man. Moreover, man has not exploited his own capacities fully.” To that Maddalo (Byron) answers, “You talk Utopia.” I wholeheartedly agree with Byron, however wishing that Shelley’s pipe dream could be possible. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Patrick McDonagh ’s "Invalid Item" The specimen we found is "Out there, there is a hidden world most don't take time to see." Do you agree that most don't take time to enjoy the beauty that is right in front of them? Why? --- I believe this is a missing-out-on-life quote, pointing to the fact that when we get so wrapped up in our little lives and its shortcomings, we do not notice or pay attention to the gifts strewn on our way, by nature or by our day-to-day living. We overlook the kind words thrown our way or do not notice tiny gifts of nature, such as how a white ibis searches for worms on a freshly mown lawn. Probably, we may concentrate on the bills to be paid, the rooms to be cleaned, or the stress of what we must do according to our daily agenda. Yet, there are a whole lot of roses to smell, people to appreciate, and oceans to delight in, while even inside a speck of dust a whole universe exists. We can, however, pay attention to those and many other things, if we are able to achieve a clarity of thought that can enable us to notice what we miss in our busy, everyday lives. This needs conscious effort and is not easy to do, but so well worth the work. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Flash Fiction-- You live alone and have just finished playing at your piano. Someone starts clapping for you. And??? ===== My fingers ache from playing for hours at a stretch, and with arthritis, my joints are now swollen to an astronomical size. I have more than an octave and a half of reach, which had awed the teachers in my youth, but the pain is too much. My hands deserve better. Time for medication and a soak in hot water. So, I stop. Yet, I still feel music still circling inside my head and running through my fingers like blood. I rise. Suddenly, I hear the clapping. I turn around, staring at the empty room, and lower my gaze to my slippered feet. Then I lift my head to the ceiling like a shipwrecked person looking at the sky on an empty beach, and next, to the wall behind the piano. There, my glance finds the photo. My mother’s picture, her eyes filled with tears, smiles at me, at her peppery, obstinate daughter, and I recognize everything at once. She was my audience, even though the tide of life stole her away together with my career. Her huge brown eyes stare unblinkingly at me, as if saying, “I knew you could do it. That’s why I pushed you.” Right then, I grasp it, for sure. The clapping was real, not in my head; it came from my mother. She clapped loud and with passion for me to be able to hear her. I bow in front of her photo. Today, the magic between us has worked…finally. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Prosperous Snow celebrating  ’s "The Brightness and Color of Stars" “Religion and science are partners and not enemies.” --- It is proven that the perplexity between the tenets of science and religion has existed throughout the centuries. In the earlier times, this rift caused major problems for mankind with scientists being persecuted for their findings, some factual and others not, while the religious were thought of as being dogmatic and thick-headed. Even today, the idea of evolution gets both parties in a tizzy. The problem is, inside both science and religion, controversies exist, as each side tries to explain its perspective while sticking to its stand. The way I see it, theology is more even and inflexible than science, while science, most of the time, can offer proof based on itself. Religion deals with moral and aesthetic values. Science deals with the facts of nature as observed and tested by the humankind. This clash of ideals, however, should be an opportunity and not a defeating set of opinions. As human beings, we have the problem of partiality, just the way we take sides in sports events. The minute we take a side, we tend not to budge. Still, when we can see the benefit in both sides and take the entire evidence of both into account, I hope, we will be able to merge the ideals of both sides to our benefit. This isn’t easy to do, especially with the several dogmatic religions worldwide and the hard-principled scientists who reject any or all kinds of religious and spiritual beliefs. I believe and hope, however, that we are slowly closing the gap and accepting the teachings of both judgments, as science has begun to prove the truth in some of religion’s concepts and religion has begun to adjust itself to the scientific approach. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: What does it mean to be a good neighbor? ---- About a month ago, about two streets away from where I live, a neighbor killed another neighbor and his eleven-year old daughter because the murderer’s Pitbull had bitten someone and the victims’ family took him to court. https://www.wptv.com/news/region-st-lucie-county/port-st-lucie/authorities-to-re... Although this is an extreme case, being responsible for one’s pets and rowdy children has to be the rule one for being a good neighbor. Then, abiding by community rules, obeying parking restrictions and etiquette, keeping to the trash and recycling schedules and landscaping requirements, and being friendly and helpful when and if needed should follow. Should there be a conflict, using tact rather than harsh words and actions is very important. A good neighbor, also, offers help when needed or asked, but doesn’t impose his ideas on the others. As a bonus, being friends with a neighbor has its many advantages. Block parties and just calling a few people over for coffee may help foster good relationships as well. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Have a sunshiny day!  ’s "The Dragonfly and the Ladybug" “Good friends will always look out for each other no matter what.” --- What I don’t agree with, here, is the “no matter what” phrase in the sentence. I am not going to look out for someone who is planning a terrorist act on my country. I am not going to look out for someone who sells or bakes or makes drugs from his home. I am not going to stand by someone who is the perpetrator of domestic violence be it on the spouse or his/her children. Some people can be good friends and may have done favors for me, but if they are perpetrating the above acts or others like them, I will not look out for them, “no matter what.” Having said all that, with most of my friends, I aim to be trustworthy and trusting of them. I listen when they want to unburden. I am supportive of them in good or bad times. I try not to be a burden to them if I am going through a bad time myself. Then, whenever I can, to the best of my ability, I help my friends if I feel they need my help. This is because integrity and trustworthiness come first, in any friendship. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: What is your favorite part of the morning? ---- The fact that I woke up. There is so much to be said about waking up. Especially when we wake up to our truths. I like the phrase “wake up.”  Even when talking about the actual waking up in the morning idea, the alternative wouldn’t be so happy on the people who’d find me motionless, would it? I also wake up, in the morning, to recognize that I am in one piece and whatever I did or wherever I went was just a dream, which has floated off to nothingness. This is the best recovery one can have. When I wake up, I don’t just jump out of bed. I think inside my head the things I need to do during the day and form a rough mental list. Maybe one day, I won’t wake up at all. Neither will I need to make mental lists. Or maybe I’ll wake up to a better place than this crazy earth. That, too, will be exciting and acceptable to me. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Tim Chiu  ’s "Righting the Ship: A Tide Beckons" ."Allow the sounds to vacate, Avail their raucous strength, With each and every vile strait Those preachers raise at length." Do you think politicians are preachers or do they promise us things they have no intention of delivering? --- Politics are everywhere. Religion, not so much or rather not effectively enough. While preachers are being accused of offering too much religious talk, politicians can very well be accused of spewing too much garbage. It means, there is such a thing as the gift of gab versus such a thing as the gift of garbage. As teaching is done by repetition mostly, I don’t blame the preachers, but the politicians should just shut up telling us lies. Most of them stretch the truths, promise the impossible, and are politically incorrect while they are treating us like ignoramuses. If that’s not an insult on this nation’s honor, I don’t know what is. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: “There have been times in my life, when I now realize I over reacted to a situation. Many of these times were triggered by feeling controlled.” Shirley Rose What do you think about overreactions, and is the feeling of being controlled the only trigger for overreactions? ===== I think we all overreact at something or other, at times. Yes, the feeling of being controlled could be a reason, if not the main reason, but there may be other instances when emotions are triggered suddenly, also. Such as the fear of getting hurt or being exploited. Thus, we may overreact to protect ourselves against what we consider as threats. Some people panic and get carried away at the sight of snakes and spiders, for example. I would probably overreact if I learned that my country will be in a war. I know of a very nice lady who is overreacting to Covid-19, to the degree of refusing to see her perfectly-healthy only daughter for months. We may also overreact to situations that may have the potential of hurting us or someone we love, especially when similar situations might have happened in the past. In the same vein, I'm quite sure that all our exaggerated reactions have more to do with our pasts than for anything else. Then, there is that thing we all observe in our pets, which makes them go berserk during a storm with thunder and lightning. This might be a product of evolution, a sort of built-in alarm system against danger. I also believe we overreact because, at the trigger-moment, we might believe subconsciously that there is nothing and no one to protect us against a threat or from being mistreated. Still, in some cultures, overreacting is associated with weakness, and people who overreact are frowned upon. In our today’s culture, however, some overreactions are socially acceptable as they are considered as standing up for one’s or a group’s rights, even when such exaggerated behavior causes social unrest and lawlessness. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From IceSkatingSugarCube  ’s "Summer Splendor" > COVID-19 has been rampant. What, if anything, have you done for summer vacation? --- I have never been a fan of summer vacations, even when we lived up north. After the move to FL, where it is summer year-round—well, almost--, a summer vacation meant visiting the family in faraway places. Not anymore! I have traveled more than my share in my life, inside and abroad, and I have no will or desire of travel anymore. I like my quiet life, more or less, and Covid-19 is the added reason for not moving around so much. As to answering the question, the only thing I have done these days is having the air conditioner on round-the-clock. When and if the heat takes a pity on us, sometimes in late afternoon, I sit reading a book, inside the covered porch in the back of the house. That is my best summer vacation. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: On this day in history, North America had what is thought to have been the worst power outage. The weather channel is projecting record heat days above normal for the vast part of North America. Do you think we're better able to handle the demand for power? Your thoughts? How do you handle power outages in general? Some of us have experience from hurricanes, tornadoes, or winter storms that might have suggestions for those unfamiliar. == It must have been sometime during the 70s or the early 80s. We had an ice-storm on Long Island in midwinter. All our neighbors went to the shelters. We stayed home. We had lots of wood to burn on the fireplace and enough provisions in the house. We spent several days together by the fireplace. I took my knitting out and I was fine. The others were bored, especially my hubby. So, I started a campfire storytelling among the four of us. The kids were entertained greatly, although the younger one fell asleep. The dog was the happiest of us all. He got to sleep and hang out with his whole pack. During the days, I cooked in the fireplace. Since the kitchen was cold and the freezer in the basement wasn’t affected, we had lots of food. I think the storm and the lack of electricity lasted a few days. I can’t recall how many, I am guessing three to six, but I am not too sure. Since we’ve moved to Florida during 1993, we rarely experienced any long-lasting electricity shortage. Sometimes during the storms, the lights flicker but come back again. It's no big deal except for resetting the time on things that don't have backup batteries. The only real electrical shortage on my street happened during the 2004 hurricanes, Francis and Jeanne. Even then, we got the electricity two days after. Other people in the same city as ours were without it for days and weeks. I guess we just got lucky. We also got lucky with our landline. That phone was never cut off. Thanks, AT&T. Then last year, when Irma hit most of the state, she kind of passed us by. Even during the storm, I had both the electricity and the internet. Thanks to Florida Power and Light and Comcast. Still, every year, when the hurricane season comes, I put friends here on WdC on alert, so that they can take over some of the stuff I have to do. Luckily, this year, so far so good, and knock on wood! For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Roari ∞ ’s "Innocence" “It's better they not know the treasures they hold.” --- I am not sure if I am too keen on innocence if the word means a lack of awareness. As to childhood innocence, it is a romantic notion, initiated during the XVIII th. century by Jean Jacques Rousseau, shaping our view of childhood, which deems children pure and sin-free as they haven’t yet learned about life, badness, and guilt. What I can accept is that we need to protect children from the too harsh realities of crime, depraved sex, etc., only because their life experiences are limited and they would have difficulties understanding adult matters that may give them unnecessary fears and worries. What I don’t understand or agree with is the quote’s saying, “it’s better they not know the treasures they hold.” If what they hold is a treasure, they’d better know about it so they can handle it, work with it, and use it according to their best interest and to the best interest of the public. Keeping them unaware of their best assets is like hoarding another person’s valuables without their assent or knowledge. Just yesterday, on the news was a six-year old’s work and willingness to help the homeless. That willingness is a treasure, and I applaud the parents for encouraging it. I am glad there exist such parents that do not put value on some fake innocence to the detriment of the child and the society in which she or he lives. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: Every story has an ending. Every ending has a new beginning. As writers, do you agree with this statement? --- Just maybe. I am not sure about every ending, though. Some endings are just that. Endings. Others may open to another beginning, as in serial stories. Talking about serial stories, I am not a big fan of them. Especially when any episode is left unfinished. I can understand, however, an author leaving a tiny something to the reader’s imagination after really finishing with the main storyline. What gets me see red are the authors who stop the story in the middle or in an exciting place in the plot, so the reader feels obligated to buy the next book. That is not fiction. That is plain greed. If I have committed my time and feeling for a book, I deserve a wrapped up main plot at the end of it. It doesn’t matter if the following books are given out freely, as Amazon does, sometimes. It has to be an author’s honor to finish the main storyline at the end of a book. When I read the last page, the book has to feel finished, even if, later on, the author takes the same characters and/or setting and tells another story. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Monty ’s "OLD FRIENDS" “I wish once more to find the friends that I miss so.” --- I think I miss all my friends, although they may have grown in different ways and if I saw them again, I wonder if we would have the same rapport, for life changes and alienates people. Still, I do miss my old friends: My best friend in Grade School who wanted to be a jet pilot and she ended up becoming something totally different, my friends in High School who went their own ways each, my friends in college most of whom became High School Lit teachers and a few others who took different paths, my friends in my adult life and my friends in my own family who have settled in different places of the planet, and most of all, my husband who was my best friend and who I miss terribly. Friendship is a relationship like no other. To me, it means camaraderie and mutual support and understanding. Add to it, fun times we have had together, and why wouldn’t I love to see them, again? I think that would be great, and I would accept the different ways through which each of us might have grown. I would hope they’d accept me, too. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From Shadow Prowler-Spreading Love  ’s "Invalid Item" . Tell us, do you agree that many people create their own problems? --- Yes, although some problems are unavoidable like the cliché of death and taxes, we tend to create our own problems. I am guilty of one problem I recently created. Due to the social distancing and isolation concerns of Covid 19, I didn’t use my car. Actually, I probably used it once in 15 or 20 days, and it stayed stuck in the garage. The result: its battery died, after only two years of life. When I called the dealer, the agent told me they were getting the same kind of battery calls several times a day. The result is, I now have a brand-new battery. I could have avoided this by starting the car with the garage door open and letting it run or just by driving it around once in a while. This, however, is a simple problem which had a solution. There are other more serious problems people create whose solutions may be hard to come by. They may be things like, overlooking the misbehavior of our kids and letting that misbehavior lead on to more serious consequences, not realizing the needs or not deciphering the pain or joy hidden under the words of our friends, not taking care of our own needs, and worrying about little things while we let big stuff pass us by. Many of our actions and thoughts lead to consequences, which create problems for us. This mostly happens because of our faulty perception of the circumstances and our omitting to see their intrinsic makeup. Thus, we give the situations an undeserved power, and that power steamrolls into problems and misery for us. |
| For "Blog City ~ Every Blogger's Paradise" Prompt: What does a perfect day look like to you? -- Is there such a thing? I don’t believe in perfect anything. As to my better, more satisfactory days, I left them behind. But talking about days, I like them to be without storms of any kind. Atmospheric or internal. For: "Space Blog" Prompt: From ßlueyeʐ 💮  ’s "Recipe For the Morning After" What do you do if you wake up sick? --- I’d hate that! I don’t like being sick and incapacitated. Still, I think I’d call the doctor or the nurse, but first, I’d try to figure out from which part of me the sickness is arising. Chances are, depending on the severity of it, I could do something about it until help could arrive. ßlueyeʐ 💮 ’s poem, however, talks about hangovers. I don’t drink at all when alone, but sometimes, I take a sip or two with company, only to be companionable. I don’t even like what that little sip of alcohol does to my senses or to my stomach, either. So, I can understand how bad a hangover can be. I’ve seen people suffer from it. Why bring something so atrocious onto oneself, unless the person is a masochist? |
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